Greek Economic Competitiveness Improving, Commission Report

Greece ranked in the third category of EU member-states of “moderate but improving competitiveness”, the European Commission said in its annual competitiveness report released here on Thursday.

The EU’s executive arm, in the report said that the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Spain were also included in the same category.

The Commission said that statistics showed that Greece was returning to growth after a long and severe recession. Structural reforms have improved competitiveness and the Economic Adjustment Programme has reduced macroeconomic and fiscal imbalances. Absorption of substantial EU funds, through major EU-funded construction projects, will have a positive impact on investments.

The EU’s executive arm noted that economic recovery is forecast to gain strength in 2014 but that full implementation of the adjustment programme continued to be crucial to consolidate recent progress. The robust improvement of the tourism sector has helped the economy, while repayment of government arrears and substantial absorption of EU funds have a positive impact on investments. For example, work has started on four large motorways with a combined value of over 7.0 billion euros, the report said.